Locomotive tender



Feb; 11, 1930. 11. H. ICHTER LOCOMOTIVE TENDER File Oct. 25; 1928sheets-sheet 1 m. R 0 m1 mH n n a k QN/ 3 Y 7 B Q 3 N A TTORNE Y Feb.'l1, I930. J. H. ICHTER 1,746,354

" LOCOMOTIVE TENDER Filed Oct. 25, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR JohnIf. [elite/ fMW ATTORNEY Feb. 11, I930. J H ICHTER 1,746,354

LOCOMOTIVE TENDER Filed Oct. 25, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VEN TORnib/7J2 1i. [allies/ A TTORNE Y Patented Feb. 11, 1930 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE JOHN H. ICH'IER, OF ASHLEY, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THESTANDARD STOKER COMPANY, INCORPORATED, A. CORPORATION OF DELAWARELocoMo'TIvE TENDER Application filed October 25, 1928. Serial No.314,955.

This invention relates to locomotive tend ers of locomotives equippedwith mechanical stoking apparatus including a conveyor system a portionof which is disposed beneath the coal bin of the tender.

It is the principal object of this invention to provide an improved coalbin structure for such tenders whereby its fuel carrying capacity isincreased, and at the same time, access may be had to the conveyorsystem for removing foreign material that may become lodged therein.-

In locomotive tenders of this character, the stoking conveyor systemusually comprises an open mouthed trough disposed on the tender-beneaththe floor of the coal bin, which floor is composed of shiftable slideplates above the trough portion of the conveyor and which may be shiftedto create an opening through which the coal will fall by gravity,assisted by the vibration of the tender, into the trough where it iscarried forward by a helicoid screw to a delivery or distributingportion-of the conveyor system on the locomotive, not shown. The forwardend of the trough terminates in a restricted opening adjacent to theforward end of the tender to form a tubular conduit for transferring thefuel to the locomotive. Just rearward of this restricted portion of theconduit is disposed a coal crushing member, mounted in the forward endof the trough to cooperate with the helicoid screw in reducing the lumpsof coal to suitable size for conveyance to the locomotive.

It is diflicult to prevent foreign material such as tramp iron, rock,wood and other substances from being mixed with the coal that is placedin the coal bin and it is fre quently found that'foreign objects areembedded in the larger lumps of coal. Much of this foreign material isfed through the conveyor system but quite often some foreign substancewill become wedged or jammed in the conveyor system, usually at thepoint of the crushing member, interrupting the operation of,theconveyor, and for this reason it is necessary that the coal bin shouldbe so constructed that provision is made for removing the obstructingforeign bodies. To

this end it has been past practice to place the forward wall of the coalbin which is usually in the form of a hinged, inwardly swinging door,commonly known as a coal gate, rearward of the fuel conveyor crusher asuitable distance to allow the operator to have access to the crusherand the conveyor system at the restricted point without it beingnecessary .for him to shovel away the fuel above the crusher which it isnecessary to do on those installations where the coal gate has beenplaced forward of the conveyor crusher.

The tendency of the railroads of our present day, is to operate theirtrains at rapid rates of speed between terminals and with a minimumnumber of stops for replenishing the supply of coal, it is thereforeboth im-' portant and essential that the coal bins be so formed as tocarry the maximum capacity possible and to make'provision for easily andquickly removing any foreign material from the stoker conveyor system.

This invention, as will appear from the fol lowing detailed descriptionread in connection with the accompanying drawings, provides a coal binconstruction which while increasing the capacity of the bin andproviding for access to the stoker conveyor also provides a desirablearrangement for hand firing of coal when necessary.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a vertical longitudinal section through a portion of alocomotive tender;

Fig. 2 is a plan view corresponding to Figure 1 with some portionsbroken away;

Fig. 3 is a section taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1 viewed in thedirection of the fall into an open mouthed trough 15 of the stokerconveying system. Plates 13 are slidable in a channel like groove orguide-ways 16, as best shown in Figure 3, formed at each side of theplates disposed lengthwise of the bin below the floor 12 and separatedtherefrom by the filler blocks 18, 18, which blocks prevent side motionof the slide plates.

The open mouthed trough 15 is usually mounted in a substantiallyhorizontal position on the tender frame and centrally thereof below theslide plates 13 of the coal bin floor. There is rotatably mounted withinthis trough a helicoid screw 19 for conveying the coal through thetrough and advancing it forward to a distributing device on thelocomotive, not shown. The helicoid screw is adapted to be driven fromits rear end portion through suitable gearing connected with any desiredtype of motor for imparting forward or reverse rotation to the screw,the motor and gearing not being shown, as the arrangement is well knownin thi' s art.

The forward end of the trough 15 terminates in a restricted opening 20adjacent to the front end of the tender, which opening communicates witha tubular conduit 210 of the conveying system for receiving the fuelfrom the trough portion and conveying it forward to the locomotive.Disposed in the trough 15 above the restricted opening 20 is a crushermember 21 which cooperates with the helicoid screw 19 for the purpose ofbreaking down the larger lumps of fuel to suitable size for conveyanceto the locomotive firebox.

The construction so far described is old, but from this description itis apparent that the foreign objects which find their way into thetrough 15 may become wedged therein at the restricted point of theconveyor system, especially at the crushing zone, thus interrupting thecontinuous delivery of the coal to the locomotive and it is, therefore,essential that provision be made for entrance into the conveyor systemfor the purpose of removing such material. The present inventionprovides a very desirable and advantageous arrangement for this purposeand it also provides for increasing the capacity of the coal bin, thenew and novel construction being hereinafter described.

The coal bin is generally provided at its forward end with a coal gate,in this instance,

a coal gate of improved construction, the gate comprising upper andlower inwardly swinging portions 22 and 23. each of which is formed bytwo sections 22*, 22 and 23, 23 respectively, each section being pivotedat its outer edge to the vertical wall or bulkhead of the tender. Thesections of the gate meet substantially at the center line of thetender.

The lower portion 23 of the coal gate is pivotally mounted to thebulkhead 24 at a point rearward of the coal crusher 21 of the conveyorsystem and the upper portion 22 of the coal gate is disposed above andfor ward of the lower gate 23 and is pivoted to the bulkhead 24 at apoint at or near the front wall of the bulkhead. There is piv otallyattached to the upper gate sections 22, 22", downwardly and rearwardlyinclined plate portions 22 and 22, said plate portions forming acontinuation of the upper sections and connecting the lower and upperportions of the gate to form a closure at the front end of the fuel bin.The sections of the coal gate may be held in closed position by anysuitable lock such as the bar 25 and any form of stop, not shown, may beused to prevent the gates from swinging outwardly.

This arrangement of the coal gate forms an alcove between the bulkheads24 and directly above the crushing zone of the conveyor trough 15, thusproviding for access to the conveying system at this point through animproved and novel slide plate formation. The forward slide plate 26when moved forward to the position shown in the drawings, forms a coverover the fuel crushing portion of the trough 15, forward of the lowercoal gate 23. The rearward part 27 of the slide plate 26 is hinged tothe main portion of the plate as at 28; and the floor 12 of the fuel binat its inner edge where it formsa top of the channel 16, is cut away at29, as best shown in Figure 1, directly forward of the lower coal gateto permit the section 27 to be raised up and thereby providing anopening into the trough 15 at a point adjacent to the crusher 21 andforward of the lower coal gate.

Thus, when the coal bin is completely filled with coal the first slideplate 26 may be pulled forward to the position shown in the drawings toform the opening 16 through which the coal will fall into the trough 15and be conveyed forward by the screw 19, and the larger lumps brokendown by the crusher 21. If foreign material becomes wedged within thefuel crushing zone when the bin is completely filled with coal, thefireman may be raising the hinged section 27 of the slide plate haveeasy access to the fuel crusher- Without it being necessary to shovelaway any coal from the bin. To assist in locating and removing theforeign body, the helicoid screw 19 may be rotated in a reversedirection to move the coal from the crushing zone rearward in the troughportion of the conveyor to clear away the coal at this point andpermitready observation of any foreign substance that may have been wedgedtherein.

If it is desired to hand fire the coal, the auxiliary doors 3%) of thelower coal gate may be raised to aliow the coal from the bin 11 to rollforward through the triangular shaped opening 31 of the lower gate on tothe rearward hinged part 27 of the first slide plate 26, which platewhile serving to form a cover over the coal crusher to prevent thefireman from stepping into the conveyor and providing access to the coalcrusher, also serves as a shovelling floor from which the fuel maybehand fired to the locomotive.

From the construction shown on the drawings and the foregoingdescription of the same, those familiar with locomotives will readilyrecognize that this invention provides a coal bin compartment soconstructed as to increase the capacity of the bin over priorconstructions and also provides for access to the crushing zone of thestoker conveying system. It will also appear that the novel form of coalgate may be used with tenders not provided with a conveyor system andfrom which the coal is hand fired to the firebox or boiler. The coalgate construction would increase the ca acity of the coal bin and thealcove formed etween the bulkheads would provide an advantageous coalsupply chamber.

I claim:

1. In combination with a coal bin, a conveyor conduit disposed beneath.the coal bin and having a coal crusher associated therewith, and a coalgate for said bin, comprising lower and upper swinging sections, thelower section mounted rearward of said coal crusher and the uppersection mounted above and forward of said lower section.

2. In combination with a coal bin, a floor for said coal bin aperturedat its central portion, a plurality of slide plates mounted forlongitudinal movement below said aperture and adapted to provide ashiftable opening in the coal bin floor, a conveyor trough disposedbeneath the slide plates and having a coal crusher mounted therein atits forward end, the forward plate of said slide plates having a hingedrearward section, said hinged section being located above said coalcrusher when said plate is in its foremost position, and a coal gate forsaid bin comprising upper and lower portions, the lower portionpivotally mounted to swing inwardly rearward of the rearward hingedsection of the slide plate when in the aforesaid position and the upperportion of the gate pivotally' mounted forward of its lower portion.

3. In combination with a' coal bin, a con veyor conduit disposed beneaththe coal bin and having a coal crushermounted therein adjacent itsforward end, a plurality of slide plates in the floor of said coal binabove said conveyor, said plates longitudinally movable to provide anopening between the coal bin and-said conveyor conduit, a coal gate forsaid fuel bin comprising upper and lower sections, said sections offsetto form an'alc'ove above thecrushing zone of said conveyor con- .duit,and one of said slide plates normally moved to provide an openingbetween the coal bin and said conveyor conduit, a coal gate for saidfuel bin at or forward of said opening, and the forward slideplatehaving a hinged rearward portion forward of the coal gate for providinaccess to said coal crusher.

5. In com ination with a coal bin, a conveyor conduit disposed beneaththe coal bin and having a coal crusher mounted therein adjacent itsforward end, a plurality of slide plates centrally of the floor of saidcoal bin and disposed above said conveyor conduit, a coal gate for saidfuel bin comprising upper and lower gates, the upper gate comprisingfour-quartered sections and the lower gate composed of two substantiallyvertical sections mounted rearward of the coal crusher of the conveyorconduit, and said slide plates movably mounted to form a shiftableopening rearward of said lower gate. r

6. In combination with a coal bin, a conveyor conduit disposed beneaththe coal bin and having a coal crusher mounted therein adjacent itsforward end, a coal gate for said coal bin comprising an upper and alower gate, the lower gate pivotally mounted rearward of said coalcrusher and the upper gate comprising substantially vertical upperportions pivotally mounted forward of the lower gate and includingdownwardly and rearwardly inclined sections hinged to said upperportions to form a closure with the lower gate.

7. In combination with a coal bin, a conveyor conduit disposed beneaththe coal bin and having a'coal crusher mounted therein at its forwardend, a floor for said coal bin provided with guide-ways-at its centralpor tion, a plurality of slide plates mounted for longitudinal movementin said guide-ways,

the forward plate of said slide plates including a rearward hingedportion, said hinged I 1 portion disposed above said coal crusher whenin forward position, a coal gate for said bin the lower portion thereofbeing rearward of the coal crusher and of the rearward hinged portion ofthe first slide plate when said plate is in its foremost position; and

the upper wall of said guide-ways cut away per and lower portions oifsetto form an alcove above the coal bin floor and between the bulkheads.

9. In combination with a coal bin, a conveyer conduit disposed beneaththe coal bin and having a coal crusher associated therewith, and a coalgate for said bin, the lower portion of said gate being rearward of saidcoal crusher, and the upper portion of said gate being above and forwardof said lower portion.

10. A locomotive tender formed with a coal bin having a coal gateforming a closure at its forward end between the bulkheads of saidtender, the lower portion of said gate ofiset rearwardly from its upperportion to form an alcove above the coal bin floor and between thebulkheads.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

JOHN H. ICHTER.

